A particularly cute puppy described by TikTok as "literal teddy bear" has been melting hearts in various videos on the platform. In one video, posted on June 19 by @bartonlikesprings, which has over 3.3 million views, Bart the chunky fox red Labrador puppy can be seen lying on his owners' bed.
One of his owners pretends to have a hurt hand, fake-crying and saying, "Bart, can you fix it?" while Bart looks inquisitively at his dad, before licking his hand. "He knows your faking it," says another voice off camera. "Please don't cry dad! Okay, I kiss it!" reads the caption.
It's well known that dogs can pick up on certain verbal and non-verbal emotional signals from humans, which is why they can make great service and therapy animals.
"A growing body of scientific research shows that dogs are just too skilled at sensing and/or interpreting how we're feeling to be duped," says the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA). "They're able to distinguish emotional facial expressions from neutral expressions, and they can tell happy faces from angry ones, just from photos of faces."
Not only can dogs sense our emotions, they can also use them to influence us. Research has shown that dogs' faces are most expressive when they know people are looking at them. "Although it's not yet clear exactly how dogs visually signal us and how we respond," says the RSPCA, "there's certainly evidence that we're susceptible to these signals. One study found that, when dogs were being watched, they often raised their eyebrows in a particular way. This eyebrow raise is known to give dogs in rescue centers a better chance of being rehomed. It may make the dogs' eyes look 'sad' or infant-like, creating an empathetic response from us."
@bartonlikesprings Please dont cry dad! Okay, I kiss it! #redlabrador #puppytiktok #puppycheck #bigboi
♬ original sound - Barton
Users on TikTok loved the video. "Those eyes were worried about the owner," wrote one. "Ooooooooo the way he is looking at u so worried," commented another.
"That's the most perfect dog i have ever seen in my life," posted one user. "Listen, I'm ready to go to war for this puppy," wrote another. "I have 3 dogs of my own but now I also need yours," one commented.
Newsweek has reached out to @bartonlikesprings via TikTok for comment.
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